Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2016/462 of 30 March 2016 amending Regulation (EC) No 324/2008 laying down revised procedures for conducting Commission inspections in the field of maritime security (Text with EEA relevance)

THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION,

Having regard to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union,

Having regard to Regulation (EC) No 725/2004 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 31 March 2004 on enhancing ship and port facility security (1), and in particular Article 9(4) thereof,

Whereas:

(1) In order to monitor the application by Member States of Regulation (EC) No 725/2004 and Directive 2005/65/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council (2) the Commission should conduct inspections. The organisation of inspections under the supervision of the Commission is needed to verify the effectiveness of national quality control systems and maritime security measures, procedures and structures.

(2) The Commission is assisted in the performance of the inspection tasks by the European Maritime Safety Agency established by Regulation (EC) No 1406/2002 of the European Parliament and of the Council (3). In the performance of the inspection tasks in the context of the European Economic Area (EEA) the Commission calls upon the assistance of national inspectors listed by European Free Trade Association (EFTA) States in accordance with Decision of the EEA Joint Committee No 116/2008 (4).

(3) Commission Regulation (EC) No 324/2008 (5) establishes procedural rules for conducting Commission inspections in the field of maritime security in a transparent, effective, harmonised and consistent manner.

(4) In the light of the experience gained since 2008, it is necessary to ensure that Commission inspections under Regulation (EC) No 324/2008 are conducted in a consistent manner in accordance with the set procedure, including a standard methodology. The measures to enhance the cooperation with the Member States and exercise of Commission powers should be efficient and transparent.

(5) Definitions of the terms used in the context of the conduct of Commission inspections should be further developed. The revisions do not extend the scope of inspections beyond the existing remit.

(6) The Commission and the Member States should work in cooperation together during the preparation and the conduct of the Commission inspections.

(7) The Commission should have the possibility of including in its inspection teams qualified national inspectors made available by the Member States that meet the necessary qualification and training criteria.

(8) To ensure a transparent and efficient conduct of Commission inspections the provisions should be clear and further developed, notably in the case of a ship inspection which concludes in a port of a Member State other than that of the port of embarkation. The issue of inspection of EU flagged ships at a location outside the European Union should be clarified to deal with the specific logistical constraints of such inspections.

(9) Sensitive but non-classified information related to an inspection should be handled under strict security measures to guarantee its confidentiality and non-disclosure.

(10) Regulation (EC) No 324/2008 should therefore be amended accordingly.

(11) The measures provided for in this Regulation are in accordance with the opinion of the Committee established by Article 11(1) of Regulation (EC) No 725/2004,

HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:

Article 1

Amendments to Regulation (EC) No 324/2008

Regulation (EC) No 324/2008 is amended as follows:

(5) Article 6 is replaced by the following: ‘Article 6 Technical assistance from the European Maritime Safety Agency in Commission inspections In providing the Commission with technical assistance pursuant to Article 2(2)(b) of Regulation (EC) No 1406/2002, the European Maritime Safety Agency shall make technical experts available to participate in Commission inspections, including the related preparatory and reporting phases.’;

(10) in Article 12, the following paragraph 3 is added: ‘3.   When a Member State proposes immediate corrective measures to address a major non-conformity found, it shall promptly notify the Commission about them before the Commission issues its inspection report. In such case, the report shall quote the corrective actions taken by the Member State. If only provisional measures are taken, the Member State shall promptly notify the Commission and shall also inform about the deadline for implementation of the complete and final corrective actions.’;

(12) in Article 16, the first paragraph is replaced by the following: ‘If an inspection discloses a major non-conformity with Regulation (EC) No 725/2004 or Directive 2005/65/EC which is deemed to have a significant impact on the overall level of maritime security in the Union and that cannot be immediately addressed at least by corrective measures of a provisional nature, the Commission shall inform the other Member States after having notified that major non-conformity to the Member State concerned.’.

Article 2

Entry into force

This Regulation shall enter into force on the twentieth day following that of its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union.

This Regulation shall be binding in its entirety and directly applicable in all Member States.

Done at Brussels, 30 March 2016.

For the Commission The President Jean-Claude JUNCKER

(1) OJ L 129, 29.4.2004, p. 6.

(2) Directive 2005/65/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 26 October 2005 on enhancing port security (OJ L 310, 25.11.2005, p. 28).

(3) Regulation (EC) No 1406/2002 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 27 June 2002 establishing a European Maritime Safety Agency (OJ L 208, 5.8.2002, p. 1).

(4) Decision of the EEA Joint Committee No 116/2008 of 7 November 2008 amending Annex XIII (Transport) to the EEA Agreement states (OJ L 339, 18.12.2008, p. 106).

(5) Commission Regulation (EC) No 324/2008 of 9 April 2008 laying down revised procedures for conducting Commission inspections in the field of maritime security (OJ L 98, 10.4.2008, p. 5).